Rally June 11 on Sakuma strike anniversary; make donation

BURLINGTON — This Friday, June 11 is the one-year anniversary of the first strike by farm workers over the wages and working conditions at Sakuma Brothers Berry Farm. As these farm workers continue to face poor treatment and retaliation by their employer, all of their supporters are invited to join them Friday at 10 a.m. for a rally in Burlington commemorating One Year of Fighting for Our Rights. (Click here for the rally flier.)

That first strike led to the formation of Familias Unidas por la Justicia, which has continued to fight this past year for a fair contract for the Sakuma Brothers workers and continues to urge consumers to boycott Sakuma berries.

TAKE A STAND! Attend Friday’s rally in Burlington! Meet at 10 a.m. just off I-5 Exit 232. Just head east and look for the banners. Can’t make it? Familias Unidas has just set up a GoFundMe campaign so you can make a donation to support their important work benefiting all farmworkers in Washington state.

There will also be a meeting this Sunday, July 13, in Seattle to discuss how Familias Unidas will move forward with the Sakuma boycott.  (See the Facebook event page.) It will be Sunday from 4 to 6 p.m. at the New Hope Baptist Church, 116 21st Ave. Please RSVP to fjp@seattleglobaljustice.org.

Familias Unidas has won a series of court victories (here and here) against the Sakuma Brothers management for illegally retaliating against the workers who walked off the job a year ago. Most recently, a judge ordered the farm’s owners to end their discriminatory denial of housing to farmworkers who participated in last year’s work stoppages. (Later that same day, Sakuma Brothers opened a 30-acre field for a free strawberry pick because they claim that they do not have the required labor force to harvest the berries, a claim Familias Unidas denies.)